Help Families Grow their Own Food in Rural Haiti

The OPDTM yam project commenced in January 2025 with the planting activities carried out in February and March 2025. The Organization established several yam farms, measuring a total of 3225 square meters which represents over a quarter of a hectare. These 6 farms have sprouted yam leaves for the Organizations.

In each farm, the Organization has committees who are responsible for managing the gardens. These committees must ensure that the gardens are properly maintained for success.

Currently, there has been no harvest; therefore, the yams are still under the growth phase. However, the Organization plans to harvest their first crops in November. The farmers hope to harvest young smaller yams that will be utilized in nurseries. By January 2026, they will harvest the yams that have come into maturity. When the harvest is complete, the mature yams will be sold to generate income as well as for consumption.

Since the yam harvest is scheduled for January 2026, the Organization has chosen to plant corn and beans alongside the yams to maximize productivity as the farmers await the growth of the yams.

Starting with this harvest, many members of the Organization will begin to benefit from the yam plan to set up their own gardens. Several new gardens will then be established as part of the project, while the Organization will continue to maintain the existing gardens that continue to bear produce for its members.

The Lambi Fund of Haiti funded a yam production project presented by OPDTM organization. This project was started in January of 2025 to address food insecurity. The organization has established several groups of small committees consisting of 3 members and a coordinating committee of 7 members. In addition, the organization has a technical team consisting of 5 members with extensive experience in the cultivation of yam. The small committees were designated to various areas to assist families and in overseeing the overall project. Before the work began, the Executive Committee of the Organization met with the small groups of each locality to discuss the project strategy. The organization educated the members on the following points:

• Seed procurement: where to purchase the seeds, how to choose the right seeds, which group will be responsible for purchasing them, how the activity will be carried out

• Which groups will be responsible for setting up the experimental gardens and personal gardens

• How the supervision work will be carried out for each type of garden

In each locality, the Executive Committees organized teams to carry out seed preparation/treatment, plow the space where the gardens would be established, and carry out the plantings. These gardens have already received 2 saplings and the members have already provided the yams with stakes (tutors). The yams are growing well in the gardens.

This strategy of using teams is a way to reduce the costs of setting up the gardens and also create more unity among the members. Currently, the coordination committee has completely set up 6 large experimental fields to produce quality seeds which is a 6 month process.

In each field, crops such as beans and corn are planted alongside the yams. When these crops are harvested, the local committees will sell them and the money earned is deposited in the Organization's reserve. This money is used to provide lunch for the members when working in the fields.

As the organization approached the end of the first phase, the organization's executive committee is working on a plan to strengthen the local committees that will select additional members to expand the activity and assist more families within the community. The technical team will be assigned as needed to accompany the members who will benefit when they set up their personal fields in the upcoming quarter.

So far, Lambi Fund of Haiti’s southern regional monitor is very pleased with the progress and the manner in which the members have given great participation in all the activities. There is an atmosphere of unity that has become stronger among the participate because of this small project. Many of the members believe that if there are no natural disasters to cause a setback during the execution of the activities, this project will begin to alleviate some of their burdens. Hopefully, it will lead towards resolving their issue with food insecurities and possibly help provide a little financial autonomy.